Day 2 : Dancing with the Daisies

Day 2’s  hangover was like being stuffed in a hot bag of something….so uncomfortable, eyes felt like sandpaper against satin due to the eyelids being partially closed whilst sleeping . It sounds stupid but for some this is a commonly known Phenomenon, nocturnal lagophthalmos. When the eyelids do not fully close and are exposed to the open atmosphere. Because eyelids function to lubricate the surface of the eyes, they begin to dry out significantly when open or partially open. OUCH right!  ok, it wasn't as bad as it is dramatized  but hangovers are dramatic.

There was an option of either a cold shower or  hot Shower ( for girls only) in the Daisy Den ( Women’s Eden). The catch was that you had to queue up for days! if you wanted to take a shower( be clean at a rock festival), you had stand in line. Well you basically queue up for everything. That’s just how it works with thousands of people all rockin it hard, drinking and camping at the same time and place.

We had a comprehensive five star camping breakfast with eggs, bacon, avo, baked beans and beer. Funs timesJ. After breakfast I shaved my legs RTD style ( don’t ask me how I did it or why my legs weren’t shaved before the festival).

The weather wasn't as great as last year for RTD. It was boiling hot last year and I remember chilling the whole day at the main stage area in the shade close to the beer tent. That’s how I got to see more performances. This year there was a bit more chilled- by that I mean, we almost missed most of the main acts due to alcohol overload at our campsite ( not that we made a massive attempt to finish it either)

Mission: Dance with the daisies

Don’t Miss: Desmond and the Tutus

At noon, we left our campsite to check out the scene. Our first stop was the Hemp stage at the Pick and Pay village. There was a swap shop where you could only exchange goods for goods with fake money, e.g  swap your shoes for fake money( that determines the value of your swapped shoes) use fake money to buy goods on display. I think it was a cool and fun concept.

We also got ourselves involved in some tree hugging activities ( got the tattoos for it). We signed up to plant trees for Greenpop where you can volunteer to plant trees in Cape Town or even Zambia. Greenpop plants trees and invites everyone to Participate in this “treevolution”. It’s not just only educational but fun too. And did I mention that they plant trees in Zambia :-D. So anyway, they had a photo booth with speech bubbles and an incomplete line… ours read “before I die, I want to…..DANCE WITH  THE DAISIES IN ZAMBIA.”

We left the Hemp Stage for the Main Stage, passing through what I called Camps Bay. Camps Bay or as it is originally known as the Mainstay Beach Bar was situated next to the dam. Camps Bay  seemed to always have some head banging and fist pumping parties. We caught “Dirty Bounce Collab” and “The Rudimentals” at the Main Stage before setting off to the savannah tent.  I spotted Siv Ngesi wondering off towards the food court walking with a mission.

We got back to our campsite later in the evening to try and reduce our booze load. We still had so much beer, wine and tequila. We invited guests over for a pre- drink session before heading off to the main stage to catch “Desmond and the Tutus” at 7:30pm.

It was a short night for us but we had an amazing time!

Desmond and the Tutus

Desmond and the Tutus

Kelly and Monty

Dirty Bounce Collab

Day 3: Crime Scene

The Hangover wasn’t as hectic on the last day of RTD but the weather was just as depressing as leaving the festival. It was cloudy with rain showers. Our mission was to pack our things and relax at the main stage till the traffic cleared out. Everyone seemed to arrive and leave at the same time. 

At 9am cars were already queuing up to leave.

Campsites looked like something from The Wizard of Oz 's hurricane with the clouds creating a dramatic effect in the background. People left their shoes, underwear, tents, chairs…..you name it.

We went to the Main Stage for the final act with “Beach Party”. At noon everyone moved over to Camps Bay. We went to the food court where I queued up half an hour for the most amazing crepe. That would have been the last queue for us at RTD because we flew out of Darling with no traffic to slow us down.

Till we meet again RTD.

XOXOXO.

Rocking the daisies DAY 1- Flight of the KONGOS

Doing it 49m RTD style!

After finding out that the Kongos were part of RTD’s amazing line- up, we couldn’t wait any longer to get the tickets. We got our tickets a month prior to the event that was taking place from 4 October- 7 October 2012. Pure excitement and preparations followed after.

We arrived at the Darling Wine Estate on Friday 5 October in the afternoon and we had just missed the traffic. Parking was being extended by a tractor grass cutter which meant that if you parked your car and forgot to count  which row you parked in, then let’s just say you would need to organise a team, a DRINK and a torch( night-time) to find your car. X_X Can’t Watch bbm face.

FYI this information is useful for the next RTD festival that’s a definite MUST GO! DATE MARKED ON THE CALENDAR ALREADY!

We proceeded to look for space in the general camping area that was already packed with millions (exaggerated count)of RTD campers that arrived between Thursday and Friday afternoon. The energy and great daisy vibes were so intense I almost wet my pants from excitement-  Like Super big WOW eyes , huge smile and of course a can of carling in the one hand.

Our Mission: start drinking Immediately

Our Vision: Drink and follow the crowd

Objectives: Try and stay tipsy( not drunk and not sober) before Kongo’s performance at 11pm, Friday Night

We got our tents up quick and trekked to the main sites to check out the scene. I just mention that socializing especially with friends requires strategic planning and effective communication. What happened after we set up camp was hours spent trying to get everyone together in one place. My sister and her boyfriend were only arriving later in the day after sunset. My phone was dying and we forgot to pack all our chargers including the one for the car.  But with a huge crowd like this and every second person possessing a blackberry, there was bound to be a charger floating around somewhere- Oh and in case you are wondering, there is a Daisy  Den in the general camping area with power plug points. At this point I just needed my phone to survive the next few hours till we got my sister and our other friends together to organize meeting points and familiarize ourselves with everyone’s camping area.

We walked to the main sites and watched “the Brothers move on” on the Main stage at 5pm. One of my friends Siya is the voice of the group/band. It was like watching performance art. Amazing costumes, moves and interesting sounds. Well that was MOST DEF a good start to a crazy weekend.

We walked to the entrance of the general camping area to wait for my sister and her boyfriend who were in a queue outside to get in. We eagerly waited for them inside like one does at the airport holding a greeting/ identification card. We had a few drinks at our campsite with a few swigs of TEQUILA ( maybe more than a few) but we still stuck to our objective for the evening.

As time went by, it was getting harder and harder to stay Tipsy. We walked back to the main stage in time for “Isochronous”. For those of you 5fm listeners, their song, ‘No Fire’,  is currently no 2 on the 5Fm Top 40.  Yes that is Isochronous and they were AmaZing. J

We played some pool (well they played and I watched) and enjoyed the refreshing taste of Carling Black Label. Then Finally Kongos performed and it was Mission Accomplished. This was also the primary stage of voiceless society . I sang so loud, jumping up and down so much that I almost knocked myself out. And when they played a track by their father, John Kongos, I almost cried.

And that how we rocked it the first night - at least from what i can remember :-)

Kelly!!

Kongos! love 'em!

More images and

Day 2 : Dancing with the Daisies

Look of Fashion

EASTGATE’S ANNUAL LOOK OF FASHION COMPETITION

 – CALL FOR ENTRIES OPEN NOW

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, 15 October 2012

Eastgate shopping centre’s annual Look of Fashion event will take place again in November. One of the most prestigious modeling events to take place at any shopping centre, it is also one of the longest running and renowned launchpads for many aspiring models.

Two previous winners, namely Tansey Coetzee and Bokang Montjane, went on to be crowned Miss South Africa after winning the Look of Fashion title. Celebrities that have entered in previous years include Claudia Henkel, Shashi Naidoo , Rosette Mogomotsi and previous runner-up, Celeste Khumalo, who was crowned Miss SA Teen in last year’s competition.

The event’s call for entries opens from 15 October and closes 26 October, 2012. Entrants need to be 18 years of age and not turn older than 25 after 1 November 2012. Entry forms are available at Eastgate shopping centre Customer Service Desk. Entries must be completed with two photographs attached; a head and shoulder shot and a full length shot, and handed in at Eastgate Centre Management, situated at Entrance 8.

Thirty semi-finalists will be invited to a screening process, whereby twelve finalists will be selected through a judging process. Semi-finalists will be advised after the 26^th of October 2012 deadline and need to be available on the 2^nd of November 2012. The final show, featuring all twelve finalists, will take place at Eastgate shopping centre on the 16^th of November 2012. The show will be choreographed by Juanita Daniel, well-known international Fashion week choreographer.

The Look of Fashion winner for 2012 will win a trip overseas to further her career internationally with Full Circle Model Management, owned by Janez Vermeiren and Paul Coetzee.

For more information visit www.eastgateshops.com or contact the Customer Service Desk on 011 479 6000.  Visit Eastgate-shops (Facebook fan page) or follow Eastgate on Twitter @Eastgateshops for the latest news on promotions and events.